Published: Thursday, June 12, 2014 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, June 11, 2014 at 8:46 p.m.

Less than two weeks after becoming operational, Hendersonville's new Fire Station 2 is already cutting response times within its new district by roughly half, fire officials say.

The $3 million, nearly 11,000-square-foot fire station on Sugarloaf Road opened for business June 2, although Cooper Construction is still doing some interior work, said Fire Chief Dorian Flowers.

"They've still got a punch list they're working on, but we felt it was more important for us to get in here and start providing a better level of service and quicker response times," Flowers said. "They're working around us as much as we're working around them."

Currently manned by a three-person crew, the new firehouse is served by Engine 2 — which used to be housed at the old station on North Main Street — along with a 23-year-old engine kept there as a reserve.

"They've been over there about a week and a half and we've seen our response times cut in half for that area," said Deputy Fire Chief Joe Vindigni. "Where it was taking us about four minutes to get there from this side of town, we're now seeing it in 2 minutes."

Flowers said the fire station responded to a medical call last week in Wolfpen, "and our engine was on the scene in six, seven minutes from the time of dispatch. We were on scene about seven minutes before EMS."

Fire engines responding to calls on the east side of the city have traditionally contended with heavy traffic on Four Seasons Boulevard, Flowers said. "Or, when we were out on that side of town on a call, we had to fight traffic coming back into town," he added.

Now, engines leaving the Sugarloaf firehouse will cover a new district, which encompasses everything from the intersection of Four Seasons and North Blue Ridge Avenue to the far eastern city limits near Morningside Lane. The district also covers I-26 and Upward Road.

But increasing response times and service levels were only two reasons city leaders chose to build the new firehouse, Flowers said. The state fire marshal's office also indicated to the city in 2009 that the city risked lowering its insurance rating if it didn't built a new fire station.

"They determined that because of the size and the layout of the city, it was determined that the city would have to open a second station or risk dropping its ISO rating," Flowers said. The city currently has an Insurance Service Office rating of Class 4, which puts it in the top 10 percent of the state's 1,256 fire departments.

"We're in real good company," Flowers said. But without a second station to maintain its ISO rating, the city flirted with a drop of one or two points when it was re-rated. Staying at Class 4 or 5 could potentially save a city resident with a $200,000 home between $200 and $300 a year on insurance premiums, he said.

The new fire department was designed with a lifespan of 70 years, Flowers said, and incorporated several features lacking at Station 1 on North Main: a meeting room capable of hosting 47 personnel during training; more storage for turnout gear and a workout room for physical fitness.

Flowers said one of the biggest killers of firefighters nationwide are heart attacks and other cardiac problems, so physical fitness is a necessity, not a luxury.

"It's our policy that every day they work, they've got to work out," he said. "It's a very stressful job anyway. We average 8-10 calls a day and some days we've had as many as 26 calls in a 24-hour period, so if you do the math, those firefighters don't get much sleep. Helping them to maintain a level of physical fitness allows us to provide a better level of service."

Another new feature built into Station 2 is a decontamination room, where chemicals and toxic soot can be washed safely from turnout gear without mixing it with bunkroom linens or other gear. Architects designed the room to serve double-duty, incorporating a manhole cover and narrow vent so firefighters can train for confined space rescues.

An official open house allowing the public to tour the finished station will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 8.

<p>Less than two weeks after becoming operational, Hendersonville's new Fire Station 2 is already cutting response times within its new district by roughly half, fire officials say.</p><p>The $3 million, nearly 11,000-square-foot fire station on Sugarloaf Road opened for business June 2, although Cooper Construction is still doing some interior work, said Fire Chief Dorian Flowers.</p><p>"They've still got a punch list they're working on, but we felt it was more important for us to get in here and start providing a better level of service and quicker response times," Flowers said. "They're working around us as much as we're working around them."</p><p>Currently manned by a three-person crew, the new firehouse is served by Engine 2 — which used to be housed at the old station on North Main Street — along with a 23-year-old engine kept there as a reserve.</p><p>"They've been over there about a week and a half and we've seen our response times cut in half for that area," said Deputy Fire Chief Joe Vindigni. "Where it was taking us about four minutes to get there from this side of town, we're now seeing it in 2 minutes."</p><p>Flowers said the fire station responded to a medical call last week in Wolfpen, "and our engine was on the scene in six, seven minutes from the time of dispatch. We were on scene about seven minutes before EMS."</p><p>Fire engines responding to calls on the east side of the city have traditionally contended with heavy traffic on Four Seasons Boulevard, Flowers said. "Or, when we were out on that side of town on a call, we had to fight traffic coming back into town," he added.</p><p>Now, engines leaving the Sugarloaf firehouse will cover a new district, which encompasses everything from the intersection of Four Seasons and North Blue Ridge Avenue to the far eastern city limits near Morningside Lane. The district also covers I-26 and Upward Road.</p><p>But increasing response times and service levels were only two reasons city leaders chose to build the new firehouse, Flowers said. The state fire marshal's office also indicated to the city in 2009 that the city risked lowering its insurance rating if it didn't built a new fire station.</p><p>"They determined that because of the size and the layout of the city, it was determined that the city would have to open a second station or risk dropping its ISO rating," Flowers said. The city currently has an Insurance Service Office rating of Class 4, which puts it in the top 10 percent of the state's 1,256 fire departments.</p><p>"We're in real good company," Flowers said. But without a second station to maintain its ISO rating, the city flirted with a drop of one or two points when it was re-rated. Staying at Class 4 or 5 could potentially save a city resident with a $200,000 home between $200 and $300 a year on insurance premiums, he said.</p><p>The new fire department was designed with a lifespan of 70 years, Flowers said, and incorporated several features lacking at Station 1 on North Main: a meeting room capable of hosting 47 personnel during training; more storage for turnout gear and a workout room for physical fitness.</p><p>Flowers said one of the biggest killers of firefighters nationwide are heart attacks and other cardiac problems, so physical fitness is a necessity, not a luxury.</p><p>"It's our policy that every day they work, they've got to work out," he said. "It's a very stressful job anyway. We average 8-10 calls a day and some days we've had as many as 26 calls in a 24-hour period, so if you do the math, those firefighters don't get much sleep. Helping them to maintain a level of physical fitness allows us to provide a better level of service."</p><p>Another new feature built into Station 2 is a decontamination room, where chemicals and toxic soot can be washed safely from turnout gear without mixing it with bunkroom linens or other gear. Architects designed the room to serve double-duty, incorporating a manhole cover and narrow vent so firefighters can train for confined space rescues.</p><p>An official open house allowing the public to tour the finished station will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 8.</p><p>___</p><p>Reach Axtell at than.axtell@blueridgenow.com or 828-694-7860.</p>